Hubert Lyautey

Hubert Lyautey (17 November 1854-21 July 1934) was a Marshal of France and a French colonial administrator. He served in French Indochina and Madagascar, and he was the first French Resident-General in Morocco from 1912 to 1925. In 1921, he was made a Marshal of France in recognition of his services.

Biography
Hubert Lyautey was born in Nancy, France, and he graduated from the French Military Academy of Saint-Cyr in 1873 and spent most of his professional life in the French colonial service. In 1912 he became resident-general of Morocco. He was recalled to Paris as Minister of WAr in 1916 but, put off by the turbulence of parliamentary politics, returned to Morocco in 1917 and served there until retirement in 1925. A paternalistic, but extremely successful governor, he carried out major modernization projects, such as irrigation and engineering projects, and the introduction of modern farming methods. At the same time, he respected inherent traditions and Islamic culture, as well as the role of the Sultan. He was widely respected in France, but his enlightened views were not shared by his successors in the colonial administration.